Bhubaneswar: National Parents Day is celebrated every year on the fourth Sunday of July. Although the parents all permanently structured to bring with them undying love and protection for their children yet the theme this year is “The Power of Parenting: Raising Happy, Healthy and Hopeful Children”. National Parents Day is celebrated to honour all the parents who unconditionally keep pouring love and dedication to their wards.
But of late, parents have not been able to devote more time to their kids as they remain occupied with their jobs. The children feel isolated and get addicted to phones and other technological gadgets. As they spend hours sitting at home, their overall health is getting affected.
Subhangini Das, a banker and mother of two sons said, “I believe engagement of children with phones have increased after Covid. I know that lack of attention from family and parents drive children to other source of distraction and fun. Therefore, I always make sure my children are surrounded by family or their parents. However, it is not always possible to be beside them and so I have enrolled them into various classes which keeps them engaged and always let them explore their limits. When children have digital disengagement, they can focus on a brighter and hopeful future.”
“It is equally important for them to pursue their passion which will keep them engaged, be it sports, friends or other activities. But, it is often seen that because of over addiction or wrong choices the children get spoiled. I have been married for a year now and I also have an experience as a teacher for the last 7 years. It helps me understand the children, their lives, their passion and their distractions towards phone”, said Rituparna Satapathy.
Bigyan Das, a professor and a father said, “It gives me immense stress to see my two sons whiling away hours surfing internet, playing video games and scrolling social media. I am yet to find a way to control them. It is also a fact that they are often given assignment in schools for which they need to surf internet. Their digital addiction makes them savvy but more than pride it fills me with stress. I feel helpless as a parent. I wish I could spend some quality time with them planning for weekend getaways to reduce their digital addiction to some extent.”
By Smruti Rekha Barik, OP